YC Alumni is copying us with $2.3M funding
I was doing my usual quarterly competitor screening to see any updates on the existing competitors.
As I was scrolling through the search results, I found a few new competitors now joining the industry we created.
It's no longer a surprise because I'm seeing them every day.
There was a guy who recorded our video meeting when I chatted with him last year. He then launched an exact copy.
There was a guy who interviewed me on his podcast, then persuaded me to become his CTO, and eventually copied our entire product, which he called FlyEngage.
There was also a business associate whom we partnered with for years who copied the product for his clients who use his LinkedIn lead generation services.
Oh well, the list goes on...
But that's not the main story today.
What surprised me this time, though, is that a few of the new copycats now go to the extent of copying our product name.
It ranges from EngageGPT, EngageBot, EngageWithAI, and Engage by company xyz.
Naturally, I clicked to read more about their product & see how they differ.
At the same time, I must admit—annoyance also filled my head.
I have no problem with anyone copying our product. It's a free market, after all.
What annoyed me is that they now go to the extent of trying to confuse the market into thinking they are the same as us.
Sure, you can argue that the word "Engage" is a common English word.
I get it, & equally many other competitors do. That's why they choose a unique & different name to stand out in the crowd and fight for their space.
Nevertheless, I did more research on each of them to keep my team and myself updated in this competitive landscape.
I googled all the above, including Engagerr AI and Engage by Persana—LinkedIn Comments with AI.
Of all of them, Engage by Persana—LinkedIn Comments with AI—is all over the news.
Apparently, they just announced they raised $2.3 million from Y Combinator, Dharmesh Shah, Race Capital, & Stage 2 Capital.
Oh wait, they are also LinkedIn veterans.
As quoted in the news, Edith Yeung, General Partner at Race Capital, said: “Customers at fast-growing enterprises are thrilled with Persana, as their sales teams experience increased productivity and efficiency in prospecting efforts.”
No doubt, jealousy filled my head, and so did anger.
I mean, WTF.
I have no problem with anyone copying our product and competing.
But have some f%^king class to choose a different name.
You just raised $2.3 million!
Can't you afford to have someone on your team come up with a better name?
Can't you afford to do something better with your funding?
Can't you have some class to avoid confusing users and compete fairly?
What a load of crap.
After talking to my team, I started to calm down.
All these VCs and the best accelerator in the world, Y Combinator, which I admire deeply, are putting $2.3 million into someone to copy our product and name.
We must have done something right.
We have acquired 70,000 users by bootstrapping.
And they have 16 users installed their Chrome extension. (bird emoji here)
And yet it's full of praises in the news...
Oh my......
What a world we live in.
Never mind, I'm going to help them.
Search Engage by Persana - LinkedIn Comments with AI on Chrome store. Please install and help them out.
And search Engage AI for our extension, please compare the two and tell me
Which one do you enjoy more?
How can we improve your experience?
Why do you choose one but not the other?
My inbox is always open, and I talk to our customers every day.
I look forward to speaking with you and improving your prospecting experience on LinkedIn.
Jason Not from FAANG or in the Valley, but someone who has actually prospected clients on LinkedIn to build his consulting business like many other business owners